1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to digital signal processing units and, more particularly, to power consumption of the buses found in digital signal processor units.
2. Background of the Invention
The digital signal processor and related devices have found increasing application in portable apparatus, such as cell phones, wireless internet devices, etc. The power consumption is a critical parameter for portable apparatus. The power consumption determines the size of the battery and the time between recharging the battery, key parameters in the portability of devices.
However, the power consumption parameter ha s several variables. The hardware implementing the device can, for example, be designed to run with minimum power expenditure. Even after every effort has been employed to reduce to power requirements of the implementing hardware, the software programs being executed by the hardware may not be optimized to provide minimum power consumption. In addition, not only can the central processing unit draw power, but bus activity can also result in the consumption of power. However, before these parameters can be optimized, a technique for the measurement of the power consumption must be provided.
A need has therefore been felt for apparatus and an associated method having the feature that the power consumption in a digital signal processor unit can be measured. It would be a feature of the apparatus and associated method to measure the power dissipated by the bus in a digital signal processing unit. It would be yet another feature of the apparatus and associated method to measure the power dissipated by the digital signal processor bus during a preselected period of activity. It would be a still further feature of the apparatus and associated method to separate the power consumed by internal bus and the power consumed by the external bus in a digital signal processing unit. It would be yet another feature of the apparatus and associated method to determine the power consumption of a digital signal processor bus for a selected portion of a software program. It would be a still further feature of the present invention to determine separately the power consumption of a digital signal processor bus for a plurality of portions of a software program.